A LA CARTE

A LA CARTE; New Year's Eve Galas Include Foie Gras in a Towel

By RICHARD JAY SCHOLEM

Published: December 25, 1994

SIMPLE fare and sophisticated feasts, one-man bands and 19-piece orchestras, $100-a-person bills and regular a la carte prices are all on the agenda for New Year's Eve.

The last dinner of the old year can be eaten in settings as varied as an Art Deco spot overlooking Huntington Harbor, a spiffy diner in Southampton or a bar stool in East Hampton. There will even be a New Year's Day hangover clinic for those who have celebrated too strenuously.

One of the most imaginative events of the evening is not in a restaurant, but in a motion-picture theater and later a catering establishment. The Cinema Arts Center in Huntington (423-7610) will open to revelers at 6:15 P.M. to serve coffees, teas and pastries. At 7 o'clock the theater will roll the 1933 version of "42d Street" starring Ruby Keeler, George Brent, Ginger Rogers and Dick Powell.

At 9 o'clock the moviegoers will turn into merrymakers by moving a mile north to the lush waterfront Harbor Club to feast on a six-course meal and dance to a 19-piece orchestra, Rhythm, Reeds & Brass. An open bar, Champagne toast and dancing exhibition by Vincent and Kate Orlando are included. The celebrators will pay $135 a person for the evening, $125 for members of the center.

Mirabelle in St. James is planning an elaborate dinner. The $97-a-person extravaganza, at the French restaurant at 404 North Country Road (584-5999), includes fricassee of Nantucket Bay scallops with an apple-and-calvados sauce, red snapper in a bouillon of cockle clams with a saffron sauce, jumbo quail filled with wild mushrooms and Chippewah rice and venison in a walnut-wine sauce with a ragout of chestnuts and salsify.

One appetizer is foie gras cooked in a towel and poached in bouillon. Among the four dessert choices is a macadamia cake with toasted coconuts and caramel sauce. Diners will also receive glasses of Champagne when they arrive and dessert wine at the end of the evening.

Panama Hattie's, 872 East Jericho Turnpike, Huntington Station (800-439-D-I-N-E), will serve a three-course $45 prix-fixe dinner at 6 P.M. and a four-course $75 dinner with a Champagne toast and party favors at 8:45 P.M. The regular brunch menu will be available at 11:30 A.M. and 2 P.M. on New Year's Day.

The Blue Parrot, 1363 Old Northern Boulevard, Roslyn (621-2494), has scheduled a 10 P.M. New Year's Eve celebration. The $55 event includes appetizers and open bar, a three-course dinner, Champagne and a midnight dessert buffet.

Caffe Angelica, 2370 Jericho Turnpike, Garden City Park (739-0505), will offer a special a la carte menu from 4:30 to 6:30 P.M. It will be followed by a $55 four-course dinner, complete with a Champagne toast, noise makers and music by Vinnie Rhodes, the One-Man Band.

The Jolly Fisherman and Steak House, 23 Main Street, Roslyn (621-0055) will hold a New Year's Eve party featuring regular a la carte four-course meals priced from $19.95 to $28.95 until 9:30 P.M. At 10 P.M. a $20-a-person cover charge will be added, and a four-piece dance band will entertain. The restaurant will reopen at 4 P.M. on New Year's Day for dinner.

At 107 Forest Avenue in Locust Valley (674-3441) seatings will be at 5:30 and 9 P.M. The early four-course dinner costs $50. The more elaborate, later five-course meal is $75.

California Grille, 360 Glen Cove Avenue, Glen Head (759-4100), is also offering an early dinner menu, from 4 to 8 P.M., and a New Year's Eve party, starting at 9 o'clock. The price of a complete early dinner will be $19.95 to $32, depending on the entree.

The 9 P.M. $59 event will begin with a cocktail party in the greenhouse. Then diners will be treated to a four-course dinner, four-hour open bar, midnight Champagne toast, a disk jockey and dancing. The next day, at brunch from 10:30 A.M. to 2:30 P.M., a complimentary glass of Champagne will be included with each meal. A special holiday dinner menu will also be served, from 3 until 9 P.M.

Nick & Toni's, 136 North Main in East Hampton (323-3550), is completely booked for its $90-a-person party. But individual diners or couples can reserve a bar stool or two and enjoy the same menu as the dining-room customers for practically half the price, at $50.

Tierra Mar, 62 Montauk Highway, Westhampton (288-2700), will ring in the year with a Champagne reception and raw bar from 8:30 to 9:30 followed by a seven-course menu for $150 that features lobster, duck confit and tournedos Rossini.

The Wild Rose Cafe, 203 Sag Turnpike, Bridgehampton (537-5050), will have a Brazilian twist. Beliza Sol, a samba-style band, will be part of the celebration, which includes a five-course prix fixe dinner for $75.

The Little Neck Fish and Grill, 254-16 Northern Boulevard, Little Neck (718-3474), has three seatings and three prices with a menu that early birds should appreciate. At the 5 P.M. seating the four-course offering will cost $24.95. The second seating is at 7:30 for $34.95, and the last seating is at 10 P.M. for $49.95 and includes unlimited Champagne.

The four-course $75 dinner at Fusion Grille, 316 Main Street, East Setauket (751-2200), will include wine with each course and dishes like lobster bisque, grilled chateaubriand and Hawaiian prawns and a tower of chocolate-and-Champagne dessert.